Colorful Garden Ideas...


from Design Seeds

Those of us who love color (me! me!) can’t resist the urge to include all the hues on the color wheel in our gardens.  
Jan Johnsen  - colorful flower garden 


Color does add a dramatic punch to a garden but it can result in visual cacophony (aka : a colorful mess).

 Longwood Gardens, in Kennett Square, Pa addressed this dilemma in their 600 foot long ‘Flower Garden Walk’. They decided to feature one color at a time..


from Design Seeds

So along this broad brick walk is a mix of flowers, spring bulbs, shrubs and grasses that showcases one individual color followed by another. 

As you stroll, you experience the full impact of each color of the rainbow, before going on to the next.

At the start is a grand sweep of lavender, purple and blue



courtesy: historicfloralgardens.blogspot 

which melds into soft pinks and reds then changes to oranges and warm yellows,


Ultimately ending in white.





Some of the plants in this garden :

  • butterfly-bush 
  • Golden oriental arborvitae,
  •  panicle hydrangea (Hydrangea paniculata 'Unique'),
  • purple smoke-bush (Cotinus coggygria 'Velvet Cloak'),
plus thousands of ever-changing bulbs, annuals and perennials from April through October.

This fun approach can be used in any garden –  a long curving flower bed can begin with white wax begonias extending through pink ones and ending with red begonias.

and in fall for a dash of purple add the ornamental cabbage! oops - here I go into the colorful mess arena...

market hues by Design Seeds


For a great color contrast paint something like a picnic bench a fun color like they did below....


Phlox in front of a blue picnic table.  I took this photo at Stone Meadow Kennel...love it.



above all, Have Fun!
















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